ATT DWAR IL-LOGĦOB (KAP. 583) Regolamenti tal-2018 dwar Komunikazzjonijiet Kummerċjali fil-Logħob Taqsim tar-Regolamenti

Suppliment tal-Gazzetta tal-Gvern ta’ Malta Nru. 20,028, 20 ta’ Lulju, 2018

Taqsima

B 2555 B

A.L. 247 tal-2018

ATT DWAR IL-LOGĦOB

(KAP. 583)

Regolamenti tal-2018 dwar Komunikazzjonijiet

Kummerċjali fil-Logħob

Taqsim tar-Regolamenti

Regolamenti

Taqsima I

Titolu u Tifsiriet

1 - 2

Taqsima II

Applikabbiltà

3 - 4

Taqsima III

Obbligi u Limitazzjonijiet Ġenerali

5 - 16

Taqsima IV

Logħob Responsabbli

17 - 18

Taqsima V

Protezzjoni ta’ Minuri u Persuni Vulnerabbli

19 - 20

Taqsima VI

Sponsorizzazzjonijiet

21 - 27

Taqsima VII

Skemi Promozzjonali Qarrieqa u Inġusti

28 - 30

Taqsima VIII

Eżenzjonijiet

Taqsima IX

Infurzar

32 - 33

A.L. 247 tal-2018

ATT DWAR IL-LOGĦOB

(KAP. 583)

Regolamenti tal-2018 dwar

Kumunikazzjonijiet Kummerċjali fil-Logħob

BIS-SAĦĦA tas-setgħat mogħtija bl-artikolu 12 tal-Att dwar il-

Logħob, is-Segretarju Parlamentari għas-Servizzi Finanzjarji,

Ekonomija Diġitali u Innovazzjoni, wara konsultazzjoni mal-Awtorità

ta’ Malta dwar il-Logħob, għamel dawn ir-regolamenti li ġejjin:-

TAQSIMA I

Titolu u Tifsiriet

The title of these regulations is the Gaming Commercial Citation.

Communications Regulations, 2018.

(1) In these regulations, save as provided in sub- Interpretation.

regulations (2) and (3), all words and phrases shall have the same

meaning as prescribed in the Gaming Definitions Regulations, 2018. L.N.

2018. (2) In these regulations, unless the context otherwise requires,

"the Act" means the Gaming Act.

(3) All other terms used in these regulations shall have the

same meaning attributed to them in the Act.

PART II

Applicability

These regulations shall be applicable to

Scope.

(a)

all authorised persons offering a licensable game;

(b) any person providing any service to, or on behalf of,

or in any way in collaboration with an authorised person

offering a licensable game.

No person shall promote, advertise, publish, or cause to be Prohibition to

published any commercial communication with respect to any publish

commercial

licensable game unless the game and the operator are duly authorised communications

unless

in accordance with the Gaming Authorisations Regulations, 2018

authorised.

L.N. 243 of

2018. Provided that where commercial communications in

breach of this regulation are published notwithstanding the provisions

of this regulation, the Authority may also take into consideration

breaches of the rules contained in these regulations during

enforcement or criminal proceedings, as the case may be.

PART III

General Obligations and Limitations

Commercial communications must be socially responsible,

with particular regard to the need to protect minors and other

vulnerable persons from harm or exploitation.

Commercial communications must not

(a)

portray, condone or encourage behaviour that is

criminal or socially irresponsible or could lead to financial,

social or emotional harm, or directly or indirectly encourage

anti-social or violent behaviour;

(b) suggest that gaming can be a resolution to social,

educational, professional or personal problems;

(c)

suggest that gaming can be an alternative to

employment, a solution to financial concerns or a form of

financial investment;

(d) portray gaming as socially attractive or suggest that

it can enhance personal and, or professional qualities, for

example by improving self-image or self-esteem, or is a way to

gain control, superiority, recognition or admiration;

(e)

portray gaming in a context of toughness or link it to

resilience or recklessness;

(f)

portray gaming as indispensable or as taking priority

in life, for example over family, friends or professional or

educational commitments;

(g)

suggest that solitary gaming is preferable to social

gaming;

(h) suggest peer pressure to game, or disparage

abstention from gaming;

(i)

suggest that skill can influence the outcome of a

game that is purely a game of chance;

(j)

provide false or untruthful information about the

chances of winning or expected return from gaming;

(k)

exploit cultural beliefs or traditions about gaming or

luck;

(l)

make reference to instantly available consumer

credit services, or any other ways of providing credit to players;

(m) tarnish the goodwill and privilege that is associated

or related in any manner whatsoever to an authorised person or

tarnish the image or reputation of another authorised person.

(1) An authorised person shall not engage in any Unsolicited

activity that involves the sending of unsolicited commercial commercial

communications

communications, whether it is through its own operation or by the

intervention of third parties.

(2) An authorised person engaged in the sending of any

solicited commercial communications must comply with a request by

any person to stop receiving such commercial communications as

soon as is reasonably practicable, and in no case later than three (3)

days from receipt of the request.

Commercial communications should not target or be sent Commercial

to players who the authorised person knows, or reasonably should communications

not to be

have known, are undergoing a period of self-exclusion

targeted to self-

excluded

players.

Provided that the authorised person has a maximum of

twenty-four hours from the moment that the player has self-excluded

before this regulation becomes applicable.

An authorised person who, subject to the Data Protection Use of data.

Act and the regulations made thereunder, collects statistical data Cap. 440.

about players, and, or, groups players based on patterns and

demographics and, or other data or metadata, to identify appropriate

marketing strategies or player categorisation, shall not use the data

gathered to urge or induce any person fitting the profile of a person

with a gaming problem to play.

Provided that, any profiling of players carried out by No attempt to

authorised persons shall always respect the principles laid down in data induce

protection legislation.

An authorised person shall not attempt to induce any No attempt to

player to continue playing the authorised games in any manner when induce.

such a player has shown the intention to stop the gaming session or,

where applicable, to leave the premises in which the gaming activity

is being conducted.

If an authorised person offers players an alternative Games without

version of the authorised games, but with the exclusion of a stake and stake or prize.

a prize, the alternative version shall retain the same technical

conditions and be otherwise identical to corresponding authorised

games.

All commercial communications must clearly display

(a)

the name of the relevant authorised person;

(b) a reference to the entity which issued the relevant

authorisation whether such entity is the Authority or the

competent authority in the relevant jurisdiction, referring to any

relevant authorisation reference numbers

Provided that commercial communications displayed on

the websites, applications or any other channel operated by the

authorised persons, or within the licensed premises run by the

authorised persons, are excluded from the requirements of this

regulation if the above information is otherwise displayed on the

same website, or within the same premises.

For the avoidance of any doubt, any commercial

communications displayed by, within or via social media account

portals held by authorised persons or third parties acting on behalf of

or in collaboration with the authorised persons, are subject to these

regulations in their entirety.

(1) No commercial communications may be issued or

distributed in any public place, or in or on any means of public

transportation in Malta

Provided that such restriction shall not apply to any

commercial communications published, displayed or broadcasted

within authorised gaming premises, or in any work environment used

by an authorised person.

(2) Sub-regulation (1) shall not apply to commercial

communications which are displayed or distributed in

(a)

locations frequented mainly by tourists, including

airports, seaports, hotels and holiday complexes

Provided that this shall not include bars and

restaurants;

(b) conferences or events specifically organised in

relation to the gaming sector;

(c)

premises of operators;

(d) premises of organisers or beneficiaries of authorised

low risk games; and

(d)

newspapers or magazines.

It shall be lawful for an authorised person to set up a sign Authorised

persons may

or notice identifying premises used or belonging to it

identify

premises within

specified

Provided that such sign or notice shall be placed directly distance.

on the premises referred to above, or not further than a radial distance

of five (5) metres from the centre of the entry point to the premises

and that sign or notice is the only sign or notice relating to the

premises at that entry point

Provided further that the sign or notice is limited to the

identifying name or brand of the authorised person, and directions

towards the entrance.

For the avoidance of any doubt, authorised persons Commercial

promoting or advertising via broadcasting means shall be subject to communications

via

the Requirements as to Advertisements, Methods of Advertising and broadcasting.

Directions Applicable to Gambling Advertisements in addition to

these regulations.

PART IV

Responsible Gaming

Educational responsible gaming messaging shall be Responsible

prominently included within all commercial communications related gaming

messages.

to gaming

Provided that where impractical due to spatial limitation,

such as on the screens of portable communications devices, the

relevant commercial communication may make use of alternative

means which capture the viewer’s attention effectively.

The web-portal address of any entity devoted to Web-portal of

responsible gaming must be carried on all commercial entity

to responsible

communications and should be presented in a manner which is clearly gaming.

legible

Provided that where impractical due to spatial limitation,

such as on the screens of portable communications devices, the

relevant commercial communication may make use of alternative

means which capture the viewer’s attention effectively

Provided further that where the alternative method is

composed of click-throughs, the landing page should be no further

than two clicks away and should be either the operator's own

responsible gaming microsite, or any other web-portal of an entity

with a related objective.

PART V

Protection of Minors and Vulnerable persons

All commercial communications, with the exception of

sponsorship, must prominently display, for their entire duration, a

sign indicating the minimum age to participate in the game being

promoted.

Without prejudice to the provisions of regulation 6,

commercial communications must not

(a)

be directed towards minors or vulnerable persons;

(b) encourage or target minors or vulnerable persons to

play a game;

(c)

feature minors;

(d)

appeal to minors or vulnerable persons in any way;

(e)

exploit the susceptibilities, aspirations, credibility,

inexperience or lack of knowledge of minors or vulnerable

persons, or present gaming as a sign of maturity or move to

adulthood.

PART VI

Sponsorships

For the purposes of these regulations, sponsorship shall be

limited to text, logo or imagery that serve the exclusive purpose of

identifying the authorised person, and excludes product placement.

Authorised persons sponsoring any organisation, event or

activity for any purpose, shall ensure that any logo or imagery used

clearly indicates the identity of the authorised person.

(1) Where an authorised person’s gaming service is in

any way related to the sponsored party or event, the authorised

person

(a)

must in no way exert undue influence in relation to

any sporting or other matters, on representatives of the

sponsored party or on any persons who can influence, or who

have insider knowledge about, the sponsored event; and

(b) must avoid any implication that they might, as a

result of the sponsorship, have any involvement in the

management of the activities being sponsored.

Activities where the majority of the audience is reasonably Sponsorships

expected to be composed of minors or of vulnerable persons, or prohibited

where activity

which have particular appeal to minors or vulnerable persons must mainly

minors or

not be sponsored.

vulnerable

persons.

Sponsorship of minors or of persons of legal gaming age Sponsorship of

minors.

portrayed as minors is expressly prohibited

Provided that it is lawful for an authorised person to

sponsor events predominantly attended by, or teams composed of,

adults, but which might include the involvement of one or more

minors.

An authorised person shall not cause any promotional Merchandising

material, including any logos or text, to appear in merchandising aimed

minors.

designed for or mainly aimed at minors.

Sponsorship of, or advertising in, televised programmes Televised

that have or are expected to have particular appeal to minors or programmes

appealing to

vulnerable persons is expressly prohibited.

minors.

PART VII

Misleading and Unfair Promotional Schemes

Promotional schemes operated by authorised persons shall Promotional

schemes.

be subject to the Consumer Affairs Act.

(1) Any promotional scheme purporting to grant any Promotional

schemes must

advantage or opportunity to a player must not be misleading and

not be

misleading and

must adhere to

(a)

must be clear as to the extent of the commitment the conditions.

consumer must make to take advantage of any offer;

(b) cannot omit or hide material information, or present

it in a manner which is unclear, unintelligible or ambiguous;

(c)

must delineate with sufficient prominence all

material information, including wagering and, or deposit

requirements which must be fulfilled by a player in order to

become entitled thereto, including examples displaying such

requirements in an intelligible and easily comprehensible

manner, as well as all or any applicable restrictions or other

conditions in a clear and unambiguous manner;

(d) must include terms and conditions referring to all

material information relating to the scheme, which shall be

expressly agreed to by the players before being enrolled in the

scheme and must thereafter always be readily available and

accessible to the player who has subscribed to the scheme

(2) The authorised person shall ensure that players can

constantly view their progress in fulfilling the requirements in order

to benefit from any opportunity or advantage granted by the

promotional scheme.

Where the promotion or advertisement is limited by time

or space, it must include as much material information as is practical,

and must direct players to an easily accessible alternative source

where all the material information is prominently displayed;

Provided that where the said advertisement is of digital

nature, the material information should be displayed no further than

one click away from the advertisement itself.

PART VIII

Exemptions

Commercial communications, the sole purpose of which is

to inform the public of an opportunity for employment or for an

educational purpose, shall be exempt from the provisions of these

regulations, provided that such commercial communications shall not

include any references to gaming services.

PART IX

Enforcement

Without prejudice to the powers set out within the Act, and

any other regulatory instrument, and notwithstanding the procedures

envisaged in other regulatory instruments for enforcement against

breaches committed by authorised persons, for the purpose of

ascertaining that the provisions of these regulations are adhered to

and in the fulfilment of its function in accordance with article 7(1)(c)

of the Act, that gaming is advertised fairly and in a responsible

manner

(a)

upon reception of a complaint by any person, or if

the Authority becomes in any other manner aware of a prima

facie breach of these regulations, the Authority must

immediately notify the respective authorised person of such

breach, and allow three (3) working days for the authorised

person to submit a defence in writing for this alleged breach;

(b) the Authority shall examine the nature of the alleged

breach of these regulations, taking into consideration the

submissions of the authorised person and publish its decision

within ten (10) days from the receipt of submissions from the

authorised person. The authorised person must immediately be

notified in writing of such decision;

Provided that, the Authority may, when it deems it

necessary, instruct the authorized person in writing to suspend

the publication or provision of the commercial communication

until the final decision is reached by the same Authority and the

authorised person shall comply with such instructions;

(c)

in the event that the Authority determines that such

commercial communication does not comply with these

regulations, the Authority may order its modification, retraction

or termination;

(d) the Authority may take any administrative action

required, including the issuing of administrative sanctions as

laid down within the Act and the regulations made thereunder

against authorised persons

Provided that, in the event that the authorised person

voluntarily amended, or temporarily suspended the commercial

communication in question, pending the final decision of the

Authority, this action will be taken into consideration by the

Authority when determining the nature of the sanction;

(e)

the Authority may call on the support of any

relevant competent Maltese authorities for the removal of any

material which is in breach of these regulations or the Act.

(1) An authorised person shall be held responsible for Performance by

any breach of these regulations, even if the action is not performed third parties.

directly by it, but by any third party

Provided that the Authority may decide against subjecting

an authorised person to administrative sanctions if it can be shown

that the third party acted without the knowledge or approval of the

authorised person, and as long as the Authority is satisfied that the

authorised person took sufficient precautions to avoid such breaches

being committed, and took action forthwith to rectify the breach and

B B 2576

endeavour that it does not re-occur.

(2) An authorised person shall, in the event that its gaming

activity is being advertised or promoted by a third party in breach of

these regulations, endeavour to rectify the situation forthwith.

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